Mayor Carolyn Kirk and the City Council have reconstituted the Gloucester Fisheries Commission after a decade of inactivity.
Why bring back the Fisheries Commission?
The answer is easy. In spite of what you read and hear in some circles, Gloucester's fishing industry is more than alive and well. It is poised to bring future wealth and prosperity to the city and the commonwealth as it has for centuries.
The just-released final report of the Harbor Economic Development Plan assembles the empirical evidence: in fact, our fishing industry is a resilient economic engine with potential to grow. With more than $54 million in value of its landings in 2009, and NOAA Fisheries continuing to rank Gloucester as ninth and 10th in the nation as measured by landed weight and economic value, Gloucester remains the iconic flagship port for the nation's fishing industry.
Read the complete opinion piece at The Gloucester Times.